Country cooking for Dick Clark Prods

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Dick Clark Prods. has entered into a partnership with the Academy of Country Music to jointly produce country music-themed programming.

Under the agreement, Dick Clark Prods. has the exclusive right to produce and distribute the ACM Awards and other events and programs.

"Country is one of the fastest-growing music genres in America today, and it crosses every demographic," DCP president Orly Adelson said. "It's not just in the heartland of America anymore. Because the academy reaches out to every new and established artist, this partnership opens us up to doing business in this world in a way that we couldn't before."

Adelson, an independent producer before joining DCP in February, said she has at least a couple of country-related reality projects in the works.

DCP has produced the Academy of Country Music Awards 29 times. The next edition airs May 18 on CBS.

Adelson said the new contract essentially extends her company's production of the awards "in perpetuity."

Reuters/Hollywood Reporter